Pappardelle bolognese

With summer in full swing, we've been doing a lot of grilling and we're certainly getting our fill of the summer's best fruits and veggies. But last week as I planned our menu, I suddenly thought of pappardelle bolognese. Not exactly a mid-July dinner - more something we'd have after a day on the slopes, but when I mentioned it to my husband, his eyes lit up too. So it was decided. Sunday's dinner would be pappardelle bolognese.

A flip through a few cookbooks or an online search will reveal as many variations for bolognese as there are Italian grandmothers. And my recipe below is yet another variation. It's based mainly on the recipe that appears in Molto Italiano, but I changed up a few things. Some call for white wine, some for red. Some use beef, others veal. Some have milk, some don't. The variations are endless. We agreed that this one was just right - mostly meat, just enough tomato and perfect with a little Parmigiano-Reggiano grated over the top.



This makes a good sized batch - I froze some for future use. Or make it for a crowd - this would serve 6 to 8 people with a side salad and some bread. We like it on pappardelle, but any pasta would work. Had I been a bit more adventurous, I would've made homemade. My version calls for red wine. I used a Zenato Valpolicello and then we had the same wine with the meal. It paired wonderfully.



Ragu Bolognese
adapted from Molto Italiano

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 pound ground veal
1 pound ground pork
4 ounces pancetta, put thru a meat grinder or ground in a food processor
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
3/4 cup red wine, preferably Italian
1 cup milk
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
Salt and pepper to taste

Pasta, cooked according to package directions
Fresh grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, to finish



Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the celery, onion, carrots and garlic and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Don't brown the vegetables.

Add the meat and increase the heat to high. Cook until the meat is browned.

Add the milk, wine, tomato paste, and thyme and stir to combine. Bring just to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about an hour to an hour and a half. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve over pasta and finish with fresh grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Farmer's market gazpacho, plus how I almost drowned Anthony Bourdain

I have a confession. Last week I almost drowned Anothony Bourdain. I know what you're thinking: what'd he do to deserve that? The answer: nothing. It was an accident. I was running a bath and was taking Kitchen Confidential with me, a book I've wanted to read for years, and I knocked it in the water. It's finally dry, but it's a wrinkled mess - I am devouring it page by page regardless. I can just hear Bourdain's voice in my head as I read. I'm getting through it quickly, so I need your help. What other foodie books should I be reading? Leave your favorites and I'll start a list. Let me know what you like and why.

Now on to the gazpacho. For my last birthday, my husband gave me a copy of 1080 Recipes. It was proudly placed on the shelf next to Phaidon's other pubs: the Silver Spoon and Vefa's Kitchen. And I hadn't used it until now. This gazpacho is Spanish-style. It's thicker than the stuff you typically see here, but it's exactly what I loved as we travelled through Spain last fall. If you've got a bumper crop of tomatoes overtaking your yard or, like me, just buy too much at the farmer's market, this is a great use of ripe tomatoes. For a light lunch or as a first course, it's cool and refreshing on a hot summer day... and olive coated goat cheese balls add a little something special. (They're purely optional, but what a yummy option to have!)



Farmer's Market Gazpacho
adapted from 1080 Recipes by Simone and Ines Ortega

4-6 large ripe tomatoes, seeded, cored and coarsely chopped (I used 4 beefsteak, 6 vine-ripiened would be about the same amount)
1/4 onion, coarsely chopped
1 small cucumber, peeled and coarsely chopped
1/2 small green pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
1/2 cup olive oil
1-2 Tbsp. sherry vinegar (use white wine vinegar if you don't have sherry)

For the goat cheese balls (optional)
2 oz. fresh goat cheese
1/4 cup pitted black olives (such as kalamata) finely chopped

Working in batches as needed, combine the tomatoes, onion, cucumber, green pepper, breadcrumbs, oil and vinegar in a blender and puree. Add salt to taste. (NOTE: taste it and add more vegetables if you prefer more flavor of one of the vegetables. You can also add some water if it's too thick, but this should be a thick gazpacho).

Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

To make the goat cheese balls, using your hands, roll piece of goat cheese into small balls and then roll each in the chopped olives to coat.

To serve, garnish the soup with the goat cheese balls.

Berry-bottom cake with vanilla-almond whipped cream

The arrival of the farmer's market always excites me - perhaps a bit too much. I tend to overbuy. I mean, there are only two of us and yet I bring home bags full of fresh produce. But who can resist fresh produce at its peak? And after all, I'm supporting local farms, right?

Needless to say, I often find myself looking for ways to use excess produce. This cake was a great way to finish up blueberries and strawberries. I made a simple sheet cake, but the same recipe would make a 9-inch layer cake. Just whip up your favorite frosting to go with it. In lieu of a heavy frosting, I made a vanilla-almond whipped cream. Fast and simple - and nice and light in the hot weather.



The verdict: I loved it. My husband, not so much. Of course he was in the mood for chocolate (so this week we have brownies... and they are yummy!)

Try it with your favorite fruit or berries. The cake is dense and moist and would suit just about any fruit.

Berry-bottom cake

3 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk
2 1/2-3 cups fresh mixed berries (blue berries, strawberries, etc.)

For the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9x13-inch glass baking dish.

Sift flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder into a bowl and set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar. Add the vanilla and water and mix until combined, then add the eggs, one at a time. Beat in flour mixture in 4 additions, alternating with buttermilk. Fold in the berries.



Spread batter in prepared baking dish and bake until the top is golden and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.



Cool in pan on a rack.

To make the whipped cream, beat the cream, vanilla and almond extract on high until soft peaks are formed. Gradually beat in the sugar. (Taste for sweetness as you go adding more or less sugar according to your taste,)

If serving cake all at once, spread cream over cooled cake and serve. Otherwise, keep cream in fridge and put a scoop on each piece as you go.

Butterflied leg of lamb with mint and garlic

Mint is one of those herbs that grows like crazy. When we first moved into our house, I bought a small plant and had it in a window box on my deck along with my other herbs. At the end of the season I planted it in a patch of my yard along with the other perennial herbs. Right now it's competing with the oregano for space - the oregano tends to win since I use the mint more often (see my mojito for the reason why!) I also use mint in a number of Moroccan and Asian dishes.



I typically grill lamb with garlic and rosemary, but I served this with the grilled vegetables with harissa dressing so I thought the mint a better flavor pairing. It's an adaptation of the recipe that appeared in the June issue of Martha Stewart Living. I trimmed the lamb of most of the fat, leaving just enough to keep it juicy. The recipe recommended pounding the meat to a relatively even thickness - this was a first for me with leg of lamb and I'll try it again for sure. I'm not sure if it was the marinade, the meat or the pounding, but this was the tenderest leg of lamb we've ever eaten. (It could also be the way my husband grilled it - perfection!)

Easy to put together and easy to prep ahead, this would make a great party dish.



Butterflied leg of lamb with mint and garlic
adapted from Martha Stewart Living, June 2010

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small bunch fresh mint, coarsely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic crushed and peeled
• Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes
• 2 pounds boneless leg of lamb, butterflied

Combine oil, mint, garlic, zest, 3 tablespoons salt, and the red-pepper flakes; season with pepper.



Pound lamb to an even 1-inch thickness. Place lamb in a baking dish, and massage marinade into meat. Refrigerate overnight or at least 4-6 hours.



Let lamb stand at room temperature for 1 hour before grilling. Heat grill to medium-high. Brush grates with oil.  Grill lamb, flipping every 5 minutes for even cooking, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 130 degrees to 135 degrees for medium-rare, 8 to 10 minutes per side. Let stand for 10 minutes. Slice lamb across the grain. Garnish with fresh mint and lemon wedges if desired.

Summer grilling: Mixed vegetables with harissa dressing

Throughout the year, we love to grill. My husband will dig paths through the snow to get to the grill during the winter so we can have lamb chops or a juicy steak. But during the summer, anything and everything goes onto the grill. It keeps the kitchen cooler and it's a fresh, simple way to prepare great meals. I have a number of grilling cookbooks that I love to flip through: Italian Grill by Mario Batali and BBQ USA and the Barbecue Bible, both by Steven Raichlen are at the top of my list.

All of my foodie magazines are full of grilling recipes at this time of year, so there's not shortage of new ideas to try. Veggies are one of my favorite things to throw on the 'cue. We grill asparagus, mushrooms, squash, peppers - you name it. We've even grilled bok choy. Usually they just get a little brush of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper before they hit the heat. But this year I've noticed some more unusual veggie recipes in some magazines. I recently clipped one from Living that is a kebab of lamb and cucumbers. I've never had a grilled cuke, but add lamb and a feta tzatziki and I'm willing to try it. Another I found was in Bon Appetit for grilled vegetables with harissa dressing. I had to try it...



Harissa is a North Africa chili paste. I've made homemade for tagines, but on a recent trip to the Wine Library, I noticed a tube of it on the shelf. It went straight into my cart. It contains hot chili peppers and other flavors like garlic and coriander. The Bon Appetit called for harissa powder - I substituted the paste with no problems. According to BA, if you can't find the powder (or the paste), simply combine 2 teaspoons coriander, 1 1/2 teaspoons ancho chile powder, 1 teaspoon each garlic, cumin and paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon paprika. My modified version of the recipe follows...

And if it sounds like a lot of veggies for two people, it is! But the leftovers were delish too. I also made a grilled veggie sandwich with some hummus. Yum!

Grilled vegetables with harissa dressing 
adapted from Bon Appetit, July 2010 issue

1 red pepper, cut into 4 or 6 strips
2 zucchini, halved lengthwise, then halved crosswise
1 yellow squash, halved lengthwise, then halved crosswise
1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices
3 Tbsp. plus 1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2-3 tsp. harissa paste
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro



Arrange the vegetables on a large platter or baking sheet. Drizzle with the 3 Tbsp. olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.

Grill on medium direct heat to desired doneness - typically just a couple minutes per side. Remove to a platter.

Whisk together the remaining oil, harissa and lemon juice. Pour some of the vinaigrette over the warm veggies and sprinkle with the chopped cilantro. Add extra vinaigrette as desired.

Note: for a spicier vinaigrette, add more harissa.

Turkey and artichoke stuffed shells

I first tried this recipe from Giada DeLaurentiis's Everyday pasta a couple of years ago and it makes a reappearance in my kitchen once or twice a year. It's a great use of ground turkey and the recipe makes a ton especially for my two-person household. If you're like me, make it in 3 smaller baking dishes, putting about 12-16 shells in each dish. Or if you have a big family or expect a crowd, go for one big dish. This go-round, we ate one dish immediately, one went straight into the freezer for future use and the third went to mom and dad.



I use Giada's Arrabiata recipe (follows) because I like the little kick from the red pepper and the extra meatiness of the pancetta, but feel free to use regular marinara too. Don't skip the fresh basil - it adds a ton of flavor to the dish. Add a side salad and you've got a perfect dinner.

This happens to be my stuffed shell recipe of choice. My mom makes great shells that are filled with cheese only. Leave a comment with your favorite filling - I'll give those a try next time instead of turkey and artichoke.



Turkey and artichoke stuffed shells

1 (12-ounce) box jumbo pasta shells

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound ground turkey
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/4 teaspoon
1 (8 to 10-ounce) package frozen artichokes, thawed and coarsely chopped
1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
5 cups Arrabbiata Sauce, recipe follows
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella (about 5 ounces)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and partially cook until tender but still very firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and the garlic and cook until the onions are soft and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the ground turkey, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is slightly golden and cooked through. Add the artichoke hearts and stir to combine. Remove from heat and let cool.



In a large bowl combine the cooled turkey mixture with the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir to combine.

To stuff the shells, cover the bottom of a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish with 1 cup of Arrabbiata sauce. Take a shell in the palm of your hand and stuff it with a large spoonful of turkey mixture, about 2 tablespoons. Place the stuffed shell in the baking dish. Continue filling the shells until the baking dish is full. Drizzle the remaining Arrabbiata Sauce over the shells, top with the grated mozzarella. If freezing, cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 1 day and up to 1 month.



To bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake until the shells are warmed through and the cheese is beginning to brown, about 60 minutes (20 minutes if shells are unfrozen.)



Arrabbiata Sauce

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 ounces sliced pancetta, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 cups jarred or fresh marinara sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until tender, about 1 minute. Add the marinara sauce and red pepper flakes and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and let cool until ready to use.

Yield: approximately 6 cups

The perfect mojito: perfect for father's day

With Father's Day a couple days off, I'm sure everyone's planning menus and getting the grills ready. We've got it a bit easier - my sister's hosting Father's Day this year, so I'm just bringing an appetizer. (Of course I still have no idea what I'm bringing, but the night is still young.) This weekend is also my Dad's birthday so there's plenty to celebrate. The weatherman is call for 90 degree heat so while the grill is getting hot, cool off with a refreshing mojito.

Mojitos are my favorite summer cocktail - I love the combination of lime and mint. When we bought our house 4 years ago, I planted mint just so I could make my own. I've experimented with the recipe over the years and I think I've got it right (I'll keep sampling to make sure!)

Before I get to the recipe, I have to say I'm more than a little annoyed this evening. It's gorgeous out so I went out to have dinner on the deck. My husband's not home so I took the latest issue of Bon Appetit for company. I was reading the BA Foodist column and a restaurant owner from California wrote in asking whether Yelp and sites like it might be the future of restaurant reviews - she was concerned she'd have to spend her time responding to a bunch of "semi-literate nincompoops". Really?! I use Yelp from time to time, I love Zagat and I also use the boards on Chowhound. So I really don't appreciate some restaurant owner in California calling me and those like me a semi-literate nincompoops.

I know many of my followers and tons of food bloggers and blog readers are actively engaging on the web today. I'm not pretending to outweigh a New York Times critic's review, but the name-calling is a bit much. I'm glad I don't live near that woman or her restaurant (North Shore Cafe in Fawnskin, by the way). Perhaps she should be reminded that we semi-literate nincompoops are her customers (or could've been!) And by the way, there are more of us than there are NYT restaurant critics. So perhaps using a public forum like Bon Appetit to call us names isn't the best idea. I doubt most of us are semi-literate - I happen to have a very good education and 10 years' experience in communications - and I know there are many wiser than me out there.

 Tastes, as Andrew Knowlton puts it, are subjective.  But all of us, literate or not, nincompoop or not, are ALL customers and should be treated as such. Anyway, I'm done ranting. Time for a mojito.



The perfect mojito

2 large sprigs fresh mint
1/2 lime
1 shot of white rum
2 tsp. white sugar
Club soda or seltzer

Tear the mint leaves into the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Squeeze the juice of the lime on top of it, the cut the lime into 4 pieces and add to the shaker. Sprinkle the sugar over the mint and lime.

Use a muddler to smash the mint leaves and lime together with the juice and sugar (the handle of a wooden spoon will work too if you don't have a muddler). Add the rum and stir.

Pour the entire mixture into a highball glass filled with ice. Pour soda over the top and give it a stir so some of the mint and limes move down in the glass.

Garnish with a sprig of mint.

This makes 1, but can easily be multiplied.